Wizards of the Coast helmsman Mark Rosewater has this week declared that as little as seven percent of surveyed Magic: The Gathering players actually dislike the crossover-slanted Universes Beyond product line enough to want it canned.
Universes Beyond sees one of the world’s most popular trading card games mingle with brands or universes outside of what we know as MTG. But in an effort to capture an even greater audience, long-time fans of MTG have complained about experiencing “product fatigue” amidst an overwhelming number of crossovers between popular IPs and the game. Rosewater was quick to push back on the idea in an Aug. 25 blog, suggesting the subset of MTG fans who dislike Universes Beyond and want the idea shredded is quite small.
“We have done a lot of market research on Universes Beyond, [and] how much players like Universes Beyond tends to vary property to property,” Rosewater said, going into detail about the factors that make up how successful an outside IP is when MTG comes knocking. The response was leveled at a fan who said they really enjoy card alterations and WotC’s efforts to expand outside of the general universe but disliked being “forced to use those IPs to get certain mechanical advantages.”
Rosewater continued, saying not every Universes Beyond product had found its mark, but the design team kept to three major philosophies when creating a new set around a different IP: “The three biggest indicators: Are they fans of the property, does it do justice to the property, and does it feel like it fits Magic as they think of Magic?”
There have certainly been more successful Universes Beyond sets than others; The Lord of the Rings was one of the most well-received sets in recent memory, due to the design team’s focus on flavor and competitive viability, but consistency is key and some releases since, players believe, have missed the mark. Ultimately, what each MTG player wants out of an IPs inclusion in MTG varies—but oversaturation is becoming a major problem. “With an ever-expanding UB, now everyone has to deal with something they don’t like,” one player said.
The aforementioned product fatigue is another problem. Bloomburrow was released less than a month ago, but all focus has switched to the next Standard set release Duskmourn in late September. In between Standard releases, UB sets, Secret Lairs, various Commander products, and more, there’s just “no time to let sets breathe.”
Add on rising costs and it’s clear why a divide is appearing between veterans wanting original MTG content, Universes Beyond fans, and everyone else. Time—and the likely success of future UB releases—will tell whether this divide widens.
